Holidaying fraudster fined for breaching court order (From The Oxford Times)

Holidaying fraudster fined for breaching court order

6:10pm Friday 15th March 2013 in News

A FRAUDSTER breached his community order by going on holiday to Thailand.

Ezra Rees, of Borrowmead Road, Northway, Oxford, told Oxford Crown Court he had been “running away” from his problems and asked for another chance.

The 23-year-old didn’t turn up for a supervision appointment on January 14 this year because he said his dad had paid for him to take a foreign holiday.

He was handed the community order for committing 10 counts of fraud by false representation, after he repeatedly used his grandmother’s Barclaycard and Marks & Spencer card to withdraw cash.

In total the cocaine addict took more than £5,000 from Teresa Funge’s bank account between October 2011 and January last year.

On July 23, Rees was sentenced to a six-month drug rehabilitation order, one year’s supervision and 50 hours’ unpaid work.

On Tuesday he told Judge Patrick Eccles: “I was running away from my problems, but it has benefited me because I’m now drug free.”

Judge Eccles said Rees must pay a £200 fine for missing the appointment and have his supervision requirement extended by three months. Explaining the fine, he added: “Clearly he can afford a holiday in Thailand.”